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Ethylene Oxide Bills In Position
Yesterday, the House Rules Committee assigned two ethylene oxide bills to the House Energy and Environment Committee that we oppose. HB3885 is Rep. Durkin's legislation that would allow the regulation (including banning) of ethylene oxide by home rule municipalities. While Sterigenics, which drew the ire of DuPage County legislators regarding EO emissions, will not reopen, the legislation would impact the only other sterilizer in the state - Medline in Lake County.
The second bill getting out of the Rules Committee is Rep. Mayfield's HB3888, which would phase out ethylene oxide statewide for sterilizers, hospitals and manufacturers, outside of very rural areas.
Both pieces of legislation will have significant ramifications for the healthcare material supply chain. There are numerous medical devices that can only be sterilized with ethylene oxide. These bills will result in shortages of sterilized devices and materials, despite the fact that we passed the most stringent regulatory scheme in the nation earlier this year.
Other Healthcare Bills Teed Up
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SB1909, which is an insurance mandate for mental health coverage for pregnant or post partum women, was kicked out of the Rules Committee and is back on second reading. We continue to oppose this bill because it creates a conflicting insurance appeal process with recently passed substance abuse legislation we negotiated last year. If the bill becomes law, a women with substance abuse challenges would have a different appeal process than a pregnant woman with substance abuse challenges, which is confusing for consumers and difficult to administer. We presented the House sponsor with language that would make us neutral, but that language has not yet been accepted.
- SB667 is Sen. Manar's legislation that would cap insulin copays at $100 per 30-day supply, as well as authorize the Attorney General to investigate and make recommendations regarding insulin pricing. The intent behind this bill is laudable - we support affordable healthcare options. However, the investigation piece is unnecessary given current authorities and capping copays only redistributes costs which will result in higher premiums or other out of pocket expenses. The legislation is still in Senate Assignments but we anticipate action given the sponsor's statewide media push for the bill.
- SB659 is an initiative of the Illinois State Dental Society - the House amendments change the bill to be an insurance mandate to cover facial congenital anomalies or birth defects. The legislation is on second reading.
- SB1557 also is now on second reading. It creates a stand-alone section in the Insurance Code for Pharmacy Benefit Managers. A comprehensive PBM bill was already signed into law earlier this year - Public Act 101-0452.
- SB2026 is Sen. Rezin's legislation that would prevent the state from seeking a waiver reducing essential health benefit coverage or pre-existing condition protections. Read the Governor's veto message here. We have heard that she does intend to call this veto override.
We'll do a brief committee rundown for veto session when committees are announced later in the week.
JCAR Update
There have been several healthcare-related rules proposed since our last update.
The Illinois Department of Human Services proposed amendments to the Part titled Sexually Violent Persons (59 IAC 299; 43 Ill Reg 11815) updating its rules for the DHS Treatment and Detention Facility (TDF) and related mental health/treatment services. The TDF, located near Rushville, houses "sexually violent persons" who have served their prison sentences, have been declared unfit to stand trial, or have been found not guilty by reason of insanity; have been declared by a court to be sexually dangerous; and have been committed to the TDF for ongoing treatment and supervision. The amendments include provisions for emergency mental health care when a resident poses a serious threat to himself/ herself or others; establish procedures for administering psychotropic medication when it is deemed medically necessary but the resident has not consented to this administration; clarify various rules, rule violations, and the consequences for rule violations; revise grievance procedures; and implement a reimbursement system under which residents pay part of the cost of their care.
DHS also proposed a new Part titled General Grantmaking (DHS) (44 IAC 7040; 43 Ill Reg 11812) incorporating by reference (as required under the Grant Accountability and Transparency Act) federal grant rules at 2 CFR 200 with specified exceptions.
DPH proposed amendments to the Part titled Hospice Programs (77 IAC 280; 43 Ill Reg 11908) implementing Public Act 100-744. The Act and the rulemaking allow residential hospice facilties to serve 20 (currently, 16) persons per location and increase the total number of DPH-licensed hospice residences from 12 to 15. The rulemaking also implements updated federal requirements for compliance with National Fire Protection Association life-safety codes; requires compliance with the Alzheimer's Disease and Related Dementias Services Act [410 ILCS 406] and its associated DPH rules (77 IAC 973); and clarifies the licensing process when a facility is sold or its ownership is substantially changed. Residential hospice programs are affected by this rulemaking.
The Department of Insurance proposed an amendment to the Part titled PreLicensing and Continuing Education (50 IAC 3119; 43 Ill Reg 11067) establishing an upper limit of 12 credit hours for certified continuing education courses. Courses that are less than 1 hour or more than 12 hours in length will not be considered for CE. Licensed insurance agents and providers may be affected.
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